After hearing Kiyoshi's requirements, Cat Granny told him and Mikoto to wait for a moment, then sent a ninja cat to fetch a blade that matched his specifications.
"I'll go restock some supplies too."
Mikoto took out a sealing scroll and told Kiyoshi to stay here while she went to purchase ninja tools. The consumption during missions was always high, and as a jonin, Mikoto didn't just maintain order in the Konoha Police Force—she also had to carry out high-level missions for the village. After all, jonin were a scarce resource.
Kiyoshi wandered around for a bit, then found a quiet corner and focused his mind on refining chakra, continuing to practice Lightning Release: Iron Block.
Since Mikoto had already taken out a sealing scroll, she was probably buying a large batch. With nothing else to do, Kiyoshi might as well keep training and improve his strength.
Thin strands of electricity spread around him. Even in moments of leisure, he was constantly evolving—growing stronger.
"What a coincidence."
Not long after he began, he heard footsteps. Looking over, he saw Uchiha Hazuki entering, along with the man he had met at the hospital before.
The Uchiha were honored guests here, but that didn't mean the shop only served them.
"Is that one of your clan members?"
Yamada Dayu noticed the Uchiha crest on Kiyoshi's robe.
"Mm… he is Uchiha Kiyoshi."
Hazuki nodded. After the secret meeting last night, Kiyoshi had left immediately. She hadn't expected to run into him here.
"Then I'll leave you two to chat. I'll go buy some shuriken."
Yamada Dayu smiled, showing his teeth in a simple, honest manner, then scratched his head and walked off, not thinking much of it.
"…Alright."
Hazuki nodded softly.
Her relationship with Dayu was good, and her only wish for now was for it to remain stable.
Now, only Kiyoshi and Hazuki were left.
"Kiyoshi, you're here to buy ninja tools too?"
Hazuki took the initiative to speak.
"Mm."
Kiyoshi replied indifferently.
She could clearly feel the coldness in his tone, and the atmosphere instantly became awkward. She was now almost certain that his previous honest demeanor had just been an act to avoid offending her.
If she had known earlier, she would have treated him better.
Hazuki sighed inwardly. Who could have expected that Kiyoshi was completely different from the usual stereotypes of the Land of Lightning, and instead looked like nothing more than a slightly fast-growing Uchiha?
"Hazuki-senpai, are you here to buy equipment too?"
Kiyoshi asked.
"I'm accompanying Dayu."
"I see… so you two are in a relationship?"
"W-we're not yet!"
Hazuki waved her hands in embarrassment. How could she, as a woman, say that so directly?
"How nice."
Kiyoshi spoke as if sighing. Just as Hazuki thought it was a blessing, his tone suddenly shifted.
"Does that mean someone like me—an outsider—doesn't deserve happiness? The ninjutsu that should have been given to me was delayed for a whole month. I suppose, deep down, you still look down on me, don't you?"
Kiyoshi stared directly at her.
The Uchiha were known as a clan of "love." It sounded ironic, but in truth, they possessed far stronger emotions than the Senju, Uzumaki, or any other clan in the ninja world—so strong that those emotions often had to be suppressed.
Because their feelings were too intense, their personalities and actions tended to become extreme, even polarized. Itachi wiped out his clan, Sasuke sought to destroy Konoha, Fugaku sacrificed himself for his son, Madara pursued the Eye of the Moon Plan, and Obito threw the entire world into chaos—all driven by overwhelming emotion.
Even Sarada awakened her Sharingan by stubbornly believing that everyone else was wrong rather than doubting herself.
At their core, the Uchiha were proud and self-centered. Hazuki was no exception—her earlier attitude had been a reflection of that. In her subconscious, she had looked down on the Land of Lightning, seeing it as crude and inferior.
"No, that day I just…"
Hazuki froze, trying to explain.
"And I wasn't even allowed to choose the ninjutsu I wanted to learn."
Kiyoshi brought up another point. She had chosen for him out of convenience, not even letting him pick which Lightning Release technique to study.
"Lord Fugaku never specified which one—you were only assigned a D-rank technique," she quickly replied.
"But he also never said I couldn't choose. Didn't he say we should unite as a clan?"
Using authority as leverage? Anyone could do that. Kiyoshi directly brought up Fugaku's words.
To be fair, Hazuki had indeed been negligent—delaying his ninjutsu for an entire month. She could have justified it, saying it was to help him adapt to the academy first…
But Kiyoshi didn't give her time to think.
"If Lord Fugaku found out how you treated me… how disappointed do you think he would be?"
As he spoke, Kiyoshi's dark eyes turned crimson.
A single tomoe rotated within each eye, giving off an eerie glow.
"!"
Startled, Hazuki instinctively activated her own Sharingan.
Two pairs of crimson eyes met in silence.
Kiyoshi had none of the usual flaws of mixed blood—both of his eyes had awakened the Sharingan!
Hazuki frowned, biting her lower lip, her expression tense.
This was bad.
She had already thought he was talented, but now both eyes had awakened—perfectly inheriting the Uchiha bloodline. How many people at his age could do that? Outside of wartime, she had never seen anyone awaken it this early.
And Kiyoshi had only just become a genin.
"Hazuki-senpai, it seems your view of me has only changed because of my talent. But I'm still a person."
Kiyoshi sighed softly.
"…What do you want?"
Hazuki asked, the same question Samui had once asked.
"I want to repair the bond between us as clan members."
Kiyoshi looked into her crimson eyes, a faint smile forming on his lips.
Among the Uchiha, strong emotions often triggered the Sharingan instinctively.
"…How do you intend to repair it?"
An uneasy feeling began to grow in Hazuki's heart. She didn't believe his words were as simple as they sounded.
Kiyoshi stepped closer.
Hazuki, despite being a chunin, instinctively stepped back—until she was pressed into a corner.
It wasn't fear of his strength.
It was fear of the consequences.
If this reached Fugaku, what punishment would she face?
Given Kiyoshi's talent and special status, Fugaku would likely take the matter seriously.
And if she were reassigned—sent to the border or elsewhere—what would happen to her relationship with Yamada Dayu?
(End of Chapter)